In the past year or so, a small number of Internet service providers have begun to provide certain information aggregation services. In the Internet context, information aggregation refers to the process of gathering data and other information from selected web sites and displaying the data on users' personal computers (PC's) and wireless devices. Although the development of Internet information aggregation systems is still in its infancy, the number of service providers offering information aggregation services is beginning to grow.
A successful information aggregation system must overcome a number of difficulties associated with operating in an Internet environment. Such difficulties include: accessing and retrieving data from a variety of diverse web-sites; accessing and retrieving secure data from a variety of secure web-sites; updating data on a timely basis; displaying data in a useful and user friendly format; maintaining the confidentiality of client data through encryption and decryption; organizing and maintaining large amounts of data; accurately and rapidly retrieving stored data; and updating and maintaining user account information.
A key feature of information aggregation systems is the ability to carry out Programmatic Data Extraction (“PDE”). In the context of Internet information aggregation systems, PDE refers to a process by which a host information aggregation server mimics the login characteristics of a client and, once logged onto an institute or web site, picks up needed information from the institute or web site. In essence, the host server makes institutes/web-sites believe that the host server is the client, thus enabling the host server to retrieve the client's secure data. The host server can then display the secure data for the user in the host server's information aggregation system.
Existing Internet information aggregation systems do not provide a function that permits online interactive sharing of financial and non-financial account information (emails, rewards etc.) as well as other personal information (like personal profile, medical records etc.) among users of the system. On existing systems, a user located in one location who has aggregated certain information (“grantor”) is unable to assign the right to other users (“grantees”) to view his or her personal information on grantee's computer. Likewise, a grantee located in one location is unable to view the grantor's information on his or her computer. The ability to selectively and easily share online aggregated personal information securely would significantly expand the uses and functionality of Internet information aggregations systems. However, in order to preserve the security of account information, the account sharing system must implement sufficient security measures. For example, grantors and grantees should not be required to disclose their login IDs and passwords to one another in order to share account information. The information should not be emailed or sent out unsecurely to each other. Additionally, the account sharing system should preferably be easy to use. For example, a grantor should be able to readily assign or revoke sharing privileges to his or her grantees. The grantor and grantees should also preferably be able to access shared information through various media like the Internet, mobile phones, PDA and other wireless handheld devices.
Internet based email and other messaging services, which allow users to exchange messages in real time, have become very common. E.g. MSN Messenger, AOL Instant Messenger. But these messages are not secure and can be easily intercepted by third parties, without the sender and recipient being aware of the interception. The availability of a messaging system that can be used to exchange messages securely between two or more users can resolve this problem. Through the new mechanism described herein, users will be able to send messages securely to selected recipients.
Multi-column layouts for displaying information and data have been around for many years. For example, newspapers typically use a three-column layout. Multi-column layouts are also used in data tables and in accounting systems. Web pages of Internet web sites frequently employ multi column layouts in a fixed format. See e.g. www.cnn.com. However, up to now, such web sites have not provided a simple means for altering the location and appearance of the information contained in the three-column layout to each user. Additionally, no one other than applicant has employed a multi column (e.g. three column) display layout in an Internet information aggregation system (for an example of applicant's three column layout. See FIG. 2 or visit www.umonitor.com). Applicant's system allows users to design various views with multi column layouts to create sets of information that can be shared with other users.
The applicant is a leading developer of information aggregation software, and has pioneered many of the innovations that are presently appearing on the Internet information aggregation market. The inventors have identified various problems associated with information aggregation systems, and have invented a system that is easy to read, use, and modify. There is thus a need for an information aggregation system having the following described characteristics and advantages over the prior art.